Bio

Bio

After graduating from Brown Medical School, Dr. Lahijani completed the Combined Internal Medicine/Psychiatry Residency Program at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. She then served as a physician in the areas of primary care and triple diagnosis (addiction, HIV, mental health). Thereafter, Dr. Lahijani completed the Psychosomatic Medicine Fellowship at the Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University where she worked at the Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center. During her fellowship, she also served as a psycho-oncologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Dr. Lahijani is trained in and administers several psychotherapeutic modalities, including Meaning Centered Psychotherapy and Dignity Therapy.

Dr. Lahijani joined the faculty of Stanford University School of Medicine in 2015 as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Since her initial appointment, Dr. Lahijani has served as the lead psychiatric oncologist at the Stanford Cancer Center where she provides psychiatric consultation services to patients with cancer and collaborates closely with her hematology and oncology colleagues to deliver comprehensive cancer care.

In 2019, she was appointed as the Medical Director of the Stanford Cancer Center Psychosocial Oncology Program where she works in Stanford Cancer Center leadership and oversees the development and operationalization of psychiatric consultation for patients with cancer. Dr. Lahijani also attends on the medical/surgical units, ICUs and in the emergency department at Stanford Hospital and Clinics to provide care for patients with complex medical and psychiatric diagnoses and to teach psychiatry, internal medicine, and neurology trainees.

As Faculty of the Advancing Communication Excellence at Stanford, Dr. Lahijani leads foundational workshops for faculty and staff to advance communication skills with patients, families, and their colleagues. She is committed to developing and contributing to efforts that focus on relationship centered skills and provider wellness.

Her clinical and scholarly interests include the interface of medicine and psychiatry, pharmacology, psycho-oncology, collaborative care models, psychotherapy for the medically ill, interdisciplinary medical education, teaching, and academic writing.

Clinical Focus

  • Internal Medicine
  • Psychiatry
  • Psychosomatic Medicine
  • Psycho-Oncology

Academic Appointments

  • Clinical Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Administrative Appointments

  • Medical Director, Stanford Cancer Center Psycho-Oncology Program (2019 - Present)

Boards, Advisory Committees, Professional Organizations

  • Member, American College of Physicians (2007 - Present)
  • Member, Association of Medicine and Psychiatry (2009 - Present)
  • Member, Academy of Consultation Liaison Psychiatry (2014 - Present)
  • Member, American Psychosocial Oncology Society (2015 - Present)

Professional Education

  • Board Certification: American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Psychiatry (2014)
  • Board Certification: American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Psychosomatic Medicine (2015)
  • Fellowship: Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine (2015) IL
  • Residency: Rush University Medical Center (2012)
  • Medical Education: Brown Medical School (2007) RI

Contact

  • Stanford Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic 401 Quarry Rd MC 5722 Stanford, CA 94305
    • Tel: (650) 498-9111
    Fax: (650) 724-3144

Teaching

Graduate and Fellowship Programs

Publications

All Publications

  • Clinical Dilemmas in Evaluating and Treating Sleep Disorders in Cancer Journal of Psychosocial Oncology Research and Practice Lahijani, S. 2019; 1 (1S): e9
  • Medical Complications of Psychiatric Treatment An Update CRITICAL CARE CLINICS Lahijani, S. C., Harris, K. A. 2017; 33 (3): 713-+

    Abstract

    Psychiatric medications are used commonly in hospitalized patients and are particularly indicated in patients who are critically ill to manage many conditions. Due to their many indications in the intensive care unit (ICU), psychiatric medications should be closely monitored in these medically compromised patients for adverse reactions and medical complications because they may affect essentially all organ systems. These range from life-threatening reactions to other less significant effects, such as sedation, to other detrimental complications, such as pancreatitis. Knowledge of psychopharmacology as well as the diagnosis and treatment of these complications is imperative in treating patients in the ICU.

    View details for PubMedID 28601142

  • Managing Depression in Patients With Cancer ONCOLOGY-NEW YORK McFarland, D., Lahijani, S., Holland, J. 2016; 30 (7): 665?71

    View details for Web of Science ID 000381789400010

    View details for PubMedID 27422114

  • Insights from Collaborative Care: A Review of the Evidence for Depression and Diabetes Psychiatric Annals Lahijani, S., Rosenthal, L. 2015; 45 (8)
  • Neurosyphilis Presenting as Mania and Psychosis After Incidental Treatment With Cephalexin: A Case Report and Literature Review of Jarisch-Herxheimer Reactions PSYCHOSOMATICS Spelber, D., Lahijani, S. 2020; 61 (2): 177?80

    View details for Web of Science ID 000519299000009

    View details for PubMedID 31331661

  • Perceptions of time spent pursuing cancer care among patients, caregivers, and oncology professionals. Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer Hall, E. T., Sridhar, D., Singhal, S., Fardeen, T., Lahijani, S., Trivedi, R., Gray, C., Schapira, L. 2020

    Abstract

    Patients with cancer spend significant time receiving treatment and recovering from side effects. Little is known about how patients and their caregivers perceive time spent receiving cancer treatment and how this impacts health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Our study aims to characterize perceptions of time invested in receiving cancer therapy as experienced by patients, caregivers, and oncology professionals.We conducted semi-structured interviews with patients undergoing treatment for advanced lung cancer and melanoma, their informal caregivers, and oncology professionals (physicians, nurses, social workers, and chaplains). Participants received and provided care at a tertiary cancer center. Interviews were audiorecorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were analyzed qualitatively using predominantly inductive coding to identify themes relating to time perception and cancer care.We interviewed 29 participants (11 patients, 7 informal caregivers, and 11 oncology professionals) and found they consistently differentiated between time remaining in life ("existential time") and time required to manage cancer treatment and symptoms ("chronological time"). Patients and caregivers reported distress around the mechanics of oncologic care that interrupted their daily lives (hobbies, activities). Participants described the impact of time invested in cancer care on dimensions of quality of life, ranging from minimal to substantial negative impact.We found that the time spent undergoing cancer treatment affects well-being and often prevents patients and caregivers from participating in meaningful activities. The investment of personal time undergoing cancer therapy for patients with advanced solid tumors merits further study and can enhance communication between patients, caregivers, and their oncologists.

    View details for DOI 10.1007/s00520-020-05763-9

    View details for PubMedID 32935204

  • Symposia & Podiums Lahijani, S. WILEY. 2020: 5

    View details for DOI 10.1002/pon.5327

    View details for Web of Science ID 000514591500002

  • Somatic Complaints and Anxiety "I Wish the Doctor Would Figure Out What's Wrong With Me" PRACTICAL STRATEGIES IN GERIATRIC MENTAL HEALTH: CASES AND APPROACHES Lahijani, S., Dunn, L. B., CassidyEagle, E. L. 2020: 81?93

    View details for Web of Science ID 000555001100006

  • Somatic Complaints and Anxiety in Older Adults Practical Strategies in Geriatric Mental Health Cases and Approaches Lahijani, S. edited by Dunn, L., Cassidy-Eagle, E. American Psychiatric Association Publishing. 2019; 1
  • Supervision of Auxiliary Health Care Providers Roles, Goals, and Learning Opportunities SUPERVISION IN PSYCHIATRIC PRACTICE: PRACTICAL APPROACHES ACROSS VENUES AND PROVIDERS Lahijani, S., DeGolia, S. G., Corcoran, K. M. 2019: 375?82

    View details for Web of Science ID 000550978200046

  • Supervision of Auxiliary Health Care Providers: Roles, Goals, and Learning Opportunities Supervision in Psychiatric Practice: Practical Approaches Across Venues and Providers Lahijani, S. edited by DeGolia, S., Corcoran, K. 2019: 375?382
  • Neurosyphilis Presenting as Mania and Psychosis after Incidental Treatment with Cephalexin: A Case Report. Academy of Consultation Liaison Psychiatry Lahijani, S., Spelber, D., Maldonado, J. 2018
  • Cultural Aspects of Transplantation Psychosocial Care of End Organ Disease and Transplant Patients Lahijani, S., Garcia, R. edited by Sher, Y., Maldonado, J. 2018: 539?546
  • Buspirone for the Treatment of Severe Antipsychotic-Induced Extrapyramidal Symptoms Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine Lahijani, S., Rosenthal, L., Meltzer, H. 2015
  • Palliative and End-of-Life-Care of Borderline Personality Disorder in Older Adults Borderline personality disorder in older adults: Emphasis on care in institutional settings Leung, M., Lahijani, S., Mulligan, T. edited by Hategan, A., Bourgeois, J., Xiong, G. 2015: 123?128
  • Levofloxacin-Induced Fulminant Hepatic Failure American College of Physicians Lahijani, S., Kahn, E., Burke, G. 2008
  • Acute Hepatits B Presenting as Hepatitis American College of Physicians Gartman, E., Lahijani, S., Gilson, D. 2006

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